AAW: Ace Art Appreciation

Creativity is one of the best ways you can express yourself, so today’s AAW post is all about appreciating the work of asexual and aspec artists! Some of the art here comes from friends of mine, and some is from the wider ace community. It is Inktober after all, so what better time to share some lovely artwork?

Zyden

Zyden is a friend of mine who creates stunning pieces of artwork, including some awesome fan art and hundreds of incredible ‘eyecons’ (like eye icons, geddit?). Take a look at their gallery on DeviantArt and maybe even get an eyecon of your own!

Peacock Honey BeeEyecons LarsPearl

‘Spectrum’ by E. Jones

This is one of my favourite pieces of asexual artwork. It’s such a simple visual with such a clear message, and it’s so memorable! This piece was created to challenge the notion that all asexual people have the same attitude towards sex, and never have any. As the title suggests, this piece shows the huge range of different experiences that belong to the asexual community. ‘Spectrum’ was originally published in The Asexual, and you can read more about it there.

This artist is a friend of mine (and they are much less sinister in real life than the username would have you think!). We were all very pleasantly surprised when our friend who was ‘so bad at art!’ and ‘hasn’t drawn since they were a teenager!’ turned out to be an incredibly talented artist once Inktober rolled around!

AsterianMonarch has a fabulous cast of characters known as The Pastels, and I am completely in love with all of them – especially Lila, whose shades of purple have STRONG ace vibes!

We Are Far Too Slow to Outrun it Now – Lila’s pronouns are she/her and fae/faer. (Click this link to read about how fae/faer pronouns work –> sta.sh/02cs0h0n3lbx)H A L C Y O N – Rose’s pronouns are she/her/hers and ve/ver/visWe Told You This Was Melodrama – Minerva (purple)’s pronouns are they/them.Mint (green) has no pronoun preference, so any pronouns are fine to use for her.They’re All Wasted – Lila’s pronouns are she/her and fae/faer.Your Speed Is Deadly – Lila’s pronouns are she/her and fae/faer.

AsterianMonarch writes: “The original conception of The Pastels had them involved in an interconnected world, and while I have drifted away from a cohesive narrative for them, the bones of that original concept are still there in their relation to one another. They all know each other in one way or another; Mint and Minerva are siblings, Lila and Mint are partners, Lila and Rose know each other through Lila’s part-time job, etc. So they’re all connected in that interpersonal way. It’s very background though, and really only relates to their drawings in who gets drawn with whom.

On the other hand, the world they exist in has become more and more disjointed over the years. I focus much more on the feelings of each individual piece, as opposed to linking them together in any substantial way. The characters have unique themes present across their drawings, but to me, the drawings all present as separate, disjointed windows into a surreal, colorful world, without any consistent continuity joining them together. And at this point I think that transience is what suits them best.”

Check out The Pastels and more of Asterian’s work over on DeviantArt, and if you like what you see, consider becoming a patron on Patreon or buying them a coffee on Ko-fi!

Tasha

With her use of bright colours, my friend Tasha is always reminding me just how fun and joyful it can be to create art! You can follow her on DeviantArt here. Some of her work is from Inktober (including AI Inktober prompts!) and some is just for fun.

Mirakuruyellow

And to finish off, I love this inclusive piece by @mirakuruyellow on Twitter! It’s a lovely reminder that everyone on the ace spectrum is valid.

If you want to discover more asexual art, have a browse on Instagram and DeviantArt! Plus, there’s a great website called Asexual Artists which features – you guessed it – asexual artists and their art.